Nikon and Canon have been fierce rivals in the photo business for decades now, and the advent of the digital era has only intensified the competition. Of course, this is nothing but good news for the consumer, as the battle between these two rivals (not to mention the rest of the growing pack of manufacturers), has resulted in a continuing stream of innovation and cost-cutting. The latest result of this process is the new Nikon D50 digital SLR, delivering most of the features that made the D70 such an exceptional product, but at a lower price point and with the camera's size and user interface retooled somewhat to better match the needs of the "family photographer." - Or anyone else who wants a feature-rich, easy-to-use, compact (but not too much so) digital SLR for a bargain price. What was most surprising to me about the D50 though, was that its image sensor and some aspects of its image quality (notably noise levels) are actually superior to those of the higher-priced D70S. (Although it must be said that the D70S is no slouch at all in the noise department.) You do definitely give up some features relative to the D70S (see the list in the pro/con box above, and the comparison matrix at the top of the review), and the D50's 18-55 mm "kit" lens clearly isn't the equal of the very nice 18-70mm unit that ships with the D70. As I said back when I first laid eyes on the prototype sample of the D50, there's just an awful lot to like here, from the just-right grip size that will feel comfortable across a wide range of hand sizes, to its excellent ease of use in "green zone," to its a complete feature bound to appeal to more advanced users. Bottom line, the Nikon D50 is just an excellent match for the aforementioned "family photographer," or for anyone wanting exceptional value in an entry-level digital SLR. This is a camera that will get you started in the world of d-SLRs at an affordable price, but one that will also give you plenty of room to grow over the years, as your skills mature. Very highly recommended, a dead shoe-in as a Dave's Pick.

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $300.00| Rating: 8

Pros:

Ergonomic Controls, WB is Easily Set, Lens Compatibility

Cons:

Reddish tint to Auto WB in Low Light, ISO Noisy Above 800

This is an excellent, introductory DSLR or backup camera. It is really lightweight, and is compatible with a wider spectrum of AF lenses than either the D40, D40x, or D60. With the Nikkor 105mm f/2.8 VR, it produces image quality that even my D300 struggles to match (perfect lens for this DSLR); conversely, don't waste time with slower lenses on this camera unless you are shooting in sufficient light (the ISO Noise and red hue from the Auto WB will muck up your images). It's interface is also more similar to its professional counterparts than any of the other intro-DSLR cameras in the Nikon array. This can be helpful if you do plan on using it as a backup. Since you can now find these used for less than the price of a new D40, I wouldn't hesitate to buy one of them again if I were in the market.

DamianP

Registered: June 2007Posts: 4

Nikon D50 review by DamianP

Review Date: 6/27/2007

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: None indicated| Rating: 9

Pros:

Good metering, IQ, screw drive motor

Cons:

no DOF preview, no gridlines, no second dial, no iso speed in VF, no vertical grip

The D50 has almost all the essential things you need to shoot portrait and landscape. I wouldn't hesitate to keep it as a second body with a wide/ultrawide zoom attatched to it where AF points and speed is not an issue.

Too bad nikon decided that the body is too entry level to deserve a grip, otherwise the camera would be pretty damn perfect for the price. The metering is much better than the D80 (matrix metering problem on D80). But having only 5 widely spreaded AF points makes composing pictures tricky when you are shooting with shallow DOF.

Another thing that the camera doesnt have is gridlines in the VF, which I find is pretty important since my composition isn't all that great. However, you can buy a replacement mirror with gridlines for $100+ if you really need it.

The fact that the VF doesnt show ISO speed is also kinda painful, especially when you have the camera mounted on a tripod with wierd positions.

Having a screw drive motor is a great plus compared to the D40(x) since that'd give you access to a larger variety of lenses, particularly some great value 3rd party lenses like the tokina 12-24 f4, tamron 17-50mm, and etc.

matthewporter

Registered: August 2006Posts: 12

Nikon D50 review by matthewporter

Review Date: 1/14/2007

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $772.00| Rating: 9

Pros:

Ease of use, Value, Excellent images, Battery life

Cons:

No second control dial, Slow continuous shooting, No RAW software

Actual amount paid: £400(GBP) including 18-55 kit lens.

This is my first digital SLR although I have experience of using several others at work. I bought it because of its very attractive price and its fantastic ease of use. It may only have the one control dial but all controls operate in just the way I would expect them too.

It takes excellent pictures and it is handy to still have the Auto and Scene modes available for when you have to hand it to a friend. The camera is very responsive and it is always possible to get the shot, even when you are starting with the camera off. The battery lasts an eternity and recharging is fast and convenient.

The burst mode is quite good and impressed me a lot to start with. Only through having used faster cameras (D1, D2H, 30D) have I noticed that sometimes I'm not able to get the shot because the burst rate is too slow. One of my biggest gripes though is Nikon's refusal to provide free software with RAW support. It's not like your buying a £50 point and shoot.

All in all a fantastic camera and I would still recommend it over the newer D40.

hbcc100

Registered: January 2007Posts: 6

Nikon D50 review by hbcc100

Review Date: 1/14/2007

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $750.00| Rating: 8

Pros:

Easy to use and great for beginners

Cons:

Burst mode not very fast

This is my first digital SLR and I love it. Before buying, I also considered a Canon entry level DSLR, but despite it having a slightly better specification, the D50 felt a lot more solidly built and a lot easier to hold. One of the main advantages of the D50 is how intuitive it is to use. I was taking pictures and experimenting with settings without even opening the manual. The ease of use enabled me to take pictures while going along on cross country skis - with gloves and while holding the poles in the other hand (I didn't change many settings though!). The duration of the batteries is impressive - I've accidentally left the camera on for a week and still had almost full battery.

The disadvantages in my opinion are the frame per second rate which could be faster and the size of the screen compared to other DSLRs. But as the screen is not needed for taking pictures, the last one is not a big problem for me.

All in all I think that the D50 is a great entry level DSLR, but if you are looking for more features like a faster burst mode rate, the D200 might be a better bet.

amesski

Registered: January 2007Posts: 1

Nikon D50 review by amesski

Review Date: 1/10/2007

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $800.00| Rating: 8

Pros:

Easy to Use

Cons:

I love this camera. It is easy enough to use that my 9 year old also takes fantastic photos with it. The action photos I can take of the kids playing sports have prompted two other families to buy the same camera. Our photos usually involve movement of some sort, (three kids), and we never have blurry spots in the photos. We feel we have certainly gotten our moneys worth out of this camera. By far the best present my husband has ever bought for me.

vNe

Registered: January 2007Posts: 7

Nikon D50 review by vNe

Review Date: 1/8/2007

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $450.00| Rating: 9

The D50 is my switch over from film SLRs. It's an excellent camera for those on a tight budget. I love the ergonomics and the build quality. It has excellent out of camera images, a great meter, and low light performance. It feels like a real tool, not a toy. For the price, it is very difficult to beat. The biggest things that I miss from my film SLR is the viewfinder and the lack of a DOF preview. My old Nikon FM has a huge viewfinder. The D50 and most DSLRs by comparison is much smaller, but adequate. You can compensate for the lack of DOF preview on the D50 by using the LCD to preview the picture, but it is slower. My other cons, no backlight and gridlines, are easily correctable with a small flashlight and post-processing. Overall, the great price and image quality far outweigh the cons.

cvizler

Registered: January 2007Posts: 10

Nikon D50 review by cvizler

Review Date: 1/8/2007

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $750.00| Rating: 9

Pros:

Spot metering, build quality, ISO/WB/QUAL buttons

Cons:

Lack of DOF control, a bit noisy 1600 ISO

Previosly I have beeen using different film cameras, including Canon a F1n and digital compacts, including Canon S50.

I like very much the nice build quality of D50, the comfortable grip and the separate ISO/WB/QUAL buttons (although I would have preferred a dedicated ISO dial, as on the Canon G7 compact). I miss the DOF control button, what I used before virtually each shot on my Canon F1n or EOS 100.

Automatic white balance setting does not seem to be better (or, in fact, as good) as on my Canon S50 or my friends' Canon DSLRs. I can not say much about the matrix metering, as with my previous cameras, I use spot metering only, which I regard as essential.

6 MP now is now the lowest resolution available in DSLR, but is enough for perfect A4 prints or photos published through the net. Noise is visible at 1600 ISO and 100% magnification on screen, but it is invisible on A4 prints made by an EPSON Photo printer. Although the JPEGS are quite decent, to exploit the full potential of the high ISO modes, I shoot NEF and use RAWshooter or Nikon Capture Editor, and they really make a difference.

PhotoPham

Registered: December 2006Posts: 1

Nikon D50 review by PhotoPham

Review Date: 12/29/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $850.00| Rating: 8

Pros:

Excellent image quality; easy to use; compact

Cons:

Average kit lens

The D50 was my first SLR ever (digital or otherwise) and it's been a pleasure to use. I don't know why I waited so long to make the switch. The camera is really easy to use and offers the right combination of automatic settings and manual control, especially as I get more comfortable with the manual settings. The image quality is really stunning compared to point-and-shoots.

I purchased the 2-lens kit (18-55; 55-200) and the 55-200 was invaluable on safari in Africa. In fact, I tend to keep the bigger lens on most of the time since the standard kit lens (18-55) is just okay.

Kong47

Registered: December 2006Posts: 9

Nikon D50 review by Kong47

Review Date: 12/26/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $650.00| Rating: 10

Pros:

small, light, high iso quality, speed, ease of use, battery life

Cons:

no DoF button, no commander flash, no top LCD backlight

The D50 is a wonderful first DSLR. I've now had mine for 14 months. It’s very easy to use. It has some of the scene modes from point and shoots which can make the transition easier. Of course it can be full manual as well, and I've noticed myself progressing towards that in the last few months. Image quality is great on the D50. It does seem to meter a little bit hot, but I often just shoot with exposure compensation at -.3 or -.7. This solves any issues. High ISO shots are very clean. I have no qualms with going up to 1600 at any time. The D50 is very responsive. Flip the power switch, and it’s on. Start navigating the menus and everything is instant. Take a picture; you'll get no shutter lag. It’s precise and fast. Ergonomics are great. The camera is small and nice for traveling, and the grip is substantial and comfortable. Build quality is great for a consumer DSLR. It made from rugged plastics around a strong frame. Battery life is great. I can get over 1000 photos when using a non-VR lens and minimal LCD usage. I don't really have any complaints about the D50. A Depth of Field button, commander flash, and top LCD backlight would be sweet, but to me it’s not missed enough to warrant upgrading. Highly recommended.

primeRaven

Registered: December 2006Posts: 1

Nikon D50 review by primeRaven

Review Date: 12/25/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $600.00| Rating: 10

Pros:

Superb camera

Cons:

No

After acquiring my D50 in Spring this year I've recently won a 2nd place with the picture Alpine Moon and Venus in the Beautiful Universe 2007 Photo Contest from Sky and Telescope. Is there a better reference for this excellent camera?

Drache

Registered: May 2006Posts: 3

Nikon D50 review by Drache

Review Date: 12/15/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $600.00| Rating: 0

Pros:

Small and easy to use

Cons:

Wish there was ISO 100

The D50 is probably the best beginner camera in my opinion and many others. Its one of the smallest SLR's and its easy to use. There are many automatic features for those looking to upgrade from a point and shoot. But also manual features for those looking to try their creative side. One very positive aspect of this camera is the battery life, its amazingly good.

matthias0210

Registered: December 2006Posts: 1

Nikon D50 review by matthias0210

Review Date: 12/14/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $500.00| Rating: 7

Pros:

sharpness, battery life, handling

Cons:

none

This isn't one of the usual techie reviews, even though I've been reading DSLR reviews for the past 6 months or so. Being the photo amateur that I am, I'm pretty well informed about the current tech specs of cameras and lenses.

Just last week my now sister-in-law asked me to take pictures at their wedding. They didn't want a photographer and I agreed. Being the owner of a fantastic little point-and-shoot Panasonic camera, I was a bit weary about how to go about this little en devour. During the summer, I had borrowed a Canon EOS 350d from a friend for a weekend. I was thoroughly unimpressed at the colors and sharpness of the images. I adjusted the color space, the saturation and all that. I also kept in mind to shoot in the middle aperture range, and never at extremes of the 18-55mm zoom lens. Still, the images weren't much better than those from my Panasonic.

This time around I borrowed a Nikon D50 from another friend of mine. She's very much a hobby shooter, like myself, and she was thrilled with it! Until she dropped the poor thing, breaking the AF on the 18-55mm Nikon kit lens. A little short on cash, she got a Sigma 18-55mm as a replacement. Ever since, she's been complaining about vivid colors.

I was faced with a dilemma. The Canon, a superior machine on paper, produced images that were plainly not good enough for me. The D50, on paper, is not as good. Compounded with the even more inferior Sigma lens I was having serious thoughts about possibly ruining the memories of my sister-in-law's wedding. I read up on the best configuration tips for a D50 on Ken Rockwell's site and dpreview.com.

During the wedding I was only worried about getting the right angles, not shooting down on people, trying to get some candids... that sort of stuff. I didn't spend too much time looking at the images on the display until after the ceremony and the following lunch. I was surprised to find about 200 pictures on the memory card. They looked somewhat overexposed and I thought, crap!

Plugging the memory card into my computer at home, however, produced incredible images. My display is color synced to the same Adobe RGB profile as used in the camera. There was almost no over exposure. The pictures were crisp and sharp and the colors quite vibrant considering all pics were made indoors.

What can I say?! This is the entry level system. Theoretically it only gets better from here on. I'd *love* to try a D80 with a nice Nikon zoom lens... The possibilities!

NYCMario

Registered: December 2006Posts: 4

Nikon D50 review by NYCMario

Review Date: 12/14/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $599.00| Rating: 9

Pros:

Price, features, quality

Cons:

No LCD backlight, Meter won't work with older lenses

After more than 12 years with an FM2 manual camera, I was drawn into the Digital world by the D50. I wanted to keep my existing Nikon-compatible lenses, some of which where auto-focus, so I decided to stick with the Nikon brand.

First, it should be noted that while those older lenses would work on the camera, the D50 will only meter with CPU-type lenses. For me, it meant that some my lenses where no longer usable. You can meter seperately, or just look in the picture preview to judge lighting, but you then need to set exposure manually with these older lenses. I consider this the worst problem with the camera.

The top LCD indicator has no backlight. I've been on a quest to take the perfect moon picture, and this is an inconvenience that can be overcome with any flashlight. There also isn't a PC-synch connection for external flashes, but this wasn't a major deal personally.

The D50 takes excellent shots. At 6MP, making 8x10 prints is no problem, even with some cropping. The sharpness is fine, but you will most likely find your selection of lenses more a factor here than the camera itself.

I originally shot in JPG mode, but now have fallen into the grove of using RAW and post-processing. The JPGs are usually very good, and a quick 'Auto' adjustments of levels and a tiny sharoen can make them really stand out. Also, on a vacation where you might take a couple hundred pictures, JPGs work well because you don't want to spend weeks post-processing.

It has shooting modes for Automatic (point and shoot), Program, Apeture, Shutter, Night, Macro, Sports, Children, Landscape, and Portrait. Though I never use anything but P, A, or S. The other modes all change certain attributes for those situations (like color tones and saturations for skin tones in Children or Portrait), and generally I don't think they are worth the effort.

On sunny days, shooting mid-day (a bad situation) the tones can get harsh like in any other camera. The pop-up flash can provide fill and works nicely.

Basically, photography is more about the person behind the camera then the camera. The benefits of the D50 over a regular point and shoot are the low noise factor of its images, its dynamic features, and it's interchangable lens system. More expensive SLR cameras will typically offer faster shooting (if you need to fire 5 shots per second), more megapixels (more options in cropping, and larger prints) and more durable build quality.

This camera sits very nicely for people looking for better images and functionality than a point and shoot camera, but not quite ready to invest heavy $$$ in more pro-sumer hardware.

archaney

Registered: December 2006Posts: 7

Nikon D50 review by archaney

Review Date: 12/11/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $890.00| Rating: 10

Pros:

Features, ergonomics, battery life, price

Cons:

None

I have had the D50 for a little over a year and have snapped over 6,000 images. The camera has performed flawlessly in a variety of shooting conditions and allowed me to capture images that simply weren't possible with my point and shoot cameras.

Highligts of the D50 are the excellent battery life, full range of features to include a spot meter that is not included on the similiar model from Canon, and ergonomics. The camera just feels right in my hand.

I highly recommend the D50 (or the new D80) to anyone moving up to a digital SLR from a point and shoot. Do expect a learning curve in learning how to use the camera's features.

anakin2178

Registered: December 2006Posts: 1

Nikon D50 review by anakin2178

Review Date: 12/10/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $850.00| Rating: 8

Pros:

Build, menu system, low noise, battery life

Cons:

None

My first SLR was a D50 and I am very satisfied with it. The image quality is excellent and have gotten great 16x20 print out of this little 6mp camera. I've never had any problems with it, and would highly recommend it to anyone getting into the SLR market. The menu system is easy to use and understand along with the manual. The kit lense is also a nice bargain though getting better glass will give you better pictures. Doesnt feel like plastic body, I personally feel it as pretty sturdy. Feels good in my hands and all the buttons are easy to use.

Tosiek

Registered: December 2006Posts: 5

Nikon D50 review by Tosiek

Review Date: 12/6/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $600.00| Rating: 8

Pros:

Inexpensive, great build quality, fast and responsive, auto ISO

Cons:

Lack of top LCD backlight, a bit bulky

This is my first DSLR and I love it. No compact camera can beat a DSLR in terms of image quality, autofocus speed and super-fast RAW shooting.
The strongest points of D50 are: its fantastic build quality, low price, ease of use, 1/500s flash synch speed and, yes, image quality. I like Auto ISO option - believe it or not, but Canon 350D and 20D do not have such feature.
The weak points: top LCD is unusable in darkness, the lowest ISO is 200 (why?), and the camera is a bit heavy.
Overall, recommended to anyone who doesn't want to spend extra $ on a D80, but still wants a very good DSLR camera.

bullfr

Registered: November 2006Posts: 9

Nikon D50 review by bullfr

Review Date: 12/1/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: None indicated| Rating: 7

Pros:

Picture quality, price

Cons:

Entry level (not for advanced users)

This DSLR is the perfect tool for the family-type camera enthusiast : it features all one can need for casual pictures taking, while keeping it simple and producing good results.
If you most of the time don't want to bother with advanced settings, but yet want a SLR (better optics, faster reactions,...), this is a great camera. You can use it almost as a no-brainer (full auto), and yet go to manual fiddling with the settings; great camera for newcomers in the world of DSLR.
Picure quality, building material, ergomics, great kit lens(es)... for the price, you get a great camera!!
More advanced users will prefer to go for the aging D70s or the newer D80 though, since they provide easier control of the pictures. But the D50 has it all

Neogene

Registered: November 2006Posts: 8

Nikon D50 review by Neogene

Review Date: 11/30/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $600.00| Rating: 9

Weaknesses: No depth of field preview button, no backlight for top LCD, no LCD protective cover, Nikon Capture is extra.

Comments: The D50 is a solid, entry-level DSLR from Nikon. I say entry level even though this DSLR should be 90% (maybe even 100%!) of what most photographers need. This DSLR allows point and shoot photography in full Auto mode for the DSLR beginner, provides various camera pre-set modes as a next step, and then also has Aperture priority, Shutter priority, and full Manual modes for photographers who want more control. I do have some complaints about this DSLR (see weakenesses listed above) but I understand that features had to be cut to make a certain price point. And for the price, it's pretty hard to beat the D50.

janda

Registered: November 2006Posts: 5

Nikon D50 review by janda

Review Date: 11/28/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $600.00| Rating: 8

Pros:

Well proportioned and cheap

Cons:

Could have more direct buttons and better view finder

My first SLR camera. Has fullfilled my needs very well. Doesn't really lack any features. Could use extra buttons for accessing certain features faster. Typically for DSLR's it has quite small view finder so manual focus can be a chore.

Picture quality is good and it produces fairly clean nice JPG's sraight out of the camera.

With out doubt Canon has equally good cheap cameras, but for people with longer finger they are far two small. I haven't really made decent comparisons between different brands but ergonomics and usability of Nikon leave little to desire.

nohm

Registered: November 2006Posts: 11

Nikon D50 review by nohm

Review Date: 11/27/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: None indicated| Rating: 9

Pros:

Cons:

The D50 body has served me well for the past year of shooting as a novice, and helped me to become a well disciplined photographer. Though the options may seem limited in comparision to the D70s or the new D80, the D50 still has a market for people who are aspiring to be serious photographers, or for film photographers looking for an easy trasition into the digital realm. The image quality is not substantially different from the D80 or the D200 when using same lenses (in my experiences and demos).

redgetanj

Registered: November 2006Posts: 5

Nikon D50 review by redgetanj

Review Date: 11/25/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $600.00| Rating: 8

Pros:

build quality, just the right size

Cons:

lacks slower ISO setting

Perfect first DSLR for those who are migrating from point and shoot cameras. Image rendition is excellent. Build quality is better than other DSLR at this price range. Easy to operate and the menu is very user friendly.

planefreek22

Registered: November 2006Posts: 2

Nikon D50 review by planefreek22

Review Date: 11/25/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $600.00| Rating: 9

Pros:

easy to use, lightweight, good image quality, nice build

Cons:

No metering with AI lenses, small viewfinder, no white balance finetuning, slow burst

Easy to use and with a nice build. It feels solid, much more so that the Canon 350D.

I wish it would meter with my Dad's AI lenses though

cycle_tourist

Registered: November 2006Posts: 2

Nikon D50 review by cycle_tourist

Review Date: 11/17/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $617.00| Rating: 8

This is my first DSLR after a pair of FM2n s and a canon G5. I wasn't sure whether to swap to digital, and so arguing that the D200 would fall in price by the cost of this within a year or two (it already has), I chose to try using a DSLR as cheaply as possible.

It has been a revelation.

Pros and cons are listed above. I would add though that in some ways the biggest con is that I now struggle to justify the D200 because this does pretty much everything I want already at a fraction of the price.

vienna

Registered: July 2006Posts: 5

Nikon D50 review by vienna

Review Date: 7/15/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $700.00| Rating: 10

Pros:

Everything -- superb piece of equipment

Cons:

Nothing worth mentioning

Well, what can I say? For the dollar, the best digital camera ever made. I just clicked my 40,000th shot and I can't think of anything I'd improve, other than upgrading the rubber grip so it doesn't wear through. Ultra clean shots at ISO 800...dead-on metering and auto white balance...nice big fat understandable menus for a change...this is the Real Deal all other mfg's will have to match. Bravo Nikon!

gerrysnaps

Registered: May 2006Posts: 5

Nikon D50 review by gerrysnaps

Review Date: 5/2/2006

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: $650.00| Rating: 10

Pros:

Great starter DSLR at a great price yet with all the essential features, image quality and durability

Cons:

It's all good!

After months of regular shooting, a couple of weaknesses in the build on the D50 have appeared. For one, the SD card door becomes easier to accidentally open as it becomes looser after many card changes. It helps little that it rubs directly under your palm as you grip the camera and has no lock like on the D70. For another, the rubber material at the back of the D50 (that provides grip for the palm and thumb in resting position) starts to 'creep' over the plastic as you will tend to put pressure and push it outwards. Given a year or two it may eventually peel off and need repair.

However these two issues are easily minor ones, and I have had far worse problems with other cameras. The D50 has survived a few careless bumps and the casing has been resistant to scratches thus far.

In the hand the grip feels just right, not as big as the D70 grip which feels even more stable but chunkier, and a lot more comfortable than the 350D grip, which is tiny and cramped for my hands, especially when working with heavier lenses.

The D50 metering modes are said to be on the 'hot' side compared to the D70, and comparing them side by side I have found this to be true. It does tend to blow highlights (overexpose bright areas so the detail is lost), but this is to me an acceptable compromise for most shooting situations that gets you a photo closer to what you would want as a final image.

Some people, of course, would rather deliberately underexpose and then correct underexposure carefully in postprocessing. Even for these people, if the D50 is too 'hot' for a shooting situation, they can always use exposure compensation to deliberately underexpose.

For anyone getting a serious case of the shutter bug, the barrier to entering the DSLR world has been lowered with the Nikon D50. The D50 may be an entry-level DSLR, but it is easily more than enough to get one started in serious photography. Compromises were made to get to the price point at which it needed to be, but for the most part the compromises were made in the right places. The D50 retains all the right DNA from its Nikon siblings to be more than worth its budget price and a perfectly reasonable choice in its bracket.

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: None indicated| Rating: 9

Pros:

Solid high quality construction, very fast response, lots of features for a camera in this range.

Cons:

Could use some top LCD backlighting, a front weel and fine white balance adjustment.

Great camera. Feels like a "Real SRL (TM)", strong and solid. It's not heavy, but it's heavy enogh to provide confidence, balance and to minimize hand shaking.

The image quality is great, it's usable even in ISO 1600, where the fine grain remebers to film. Can't even see grain in lower ISOs. Dynamic range is excelent in ISO 200-800 and very good at 1600.
Low light shooting is very good, I've made a couple of several minute exposures (using bulb mode) and the results are amazing. The only thing I miss here is white balance fine tuning, as night shots usually look too warm (I like cool nights), but it can be fixed easily adjusting the white balance to one of the warmest presets or shooting in RAW mode.

The integrated flash is very nice, powerful and very fast to recharge. Also the flash mettering is awesome, the best I've seen yet, almost all my flash pics are perfectly exposed.

The viewfinder is good, a little small to my taste (I'm used to film SRLs), but very bright and sharp. Info displayed both in the viewfinder and top LCD is OK... I could use an ISO indicator but it's not a big deal. One thing I *REALLY* miss is backlighting in top LCD, I have to use the viewfinder every time I need to check the settings when shooting in the dark with my tripod.

Autofocus is good, works very well in low lighting, and if shooting in absolute dark you can enable the AF Assist light, wich is very bright and white, it has a longer range than the usual red lights, and it's nicer and easier to use than flash strobes (and less confusing to people too).

Matrix metering is very good, but sometimes tend to overexpose a little (0.3 stops). Well it doesn't really "overexpose" as histogram ranges are always OK, but sometimes images just "feel" overexposed. This is easily fixed adjusting exposure compensation, which is very easy to do.

Continuous shooting is good, and the buffer is quite big. I couldn't fill it using my Panasonic SD card. It shoots about 2 times a second, according to my instinct

Startup is very fast, it is almost instantaneous.

The menus are very well ordered, it's easy to find every setting and have a simple online help.

It has a good range of image settings, but I'd like some more control on saturation, as normal tends to oversaturate artificial (ie non natural) colors, and the -1 parameter (moderate) feels a bit too desaturated, something between (like -0.5) would have been nice, but this could be fixed with a firmware update, so I still have hope

Overall it's a great camera, and I'm very pleased with it.

TERRY CLOSE

Registered: November 2005Posts: 1

Nikon D50 review by TERRY CLOSE

Review Date: 3/8/2006

Would you recommend the product? No |
Total Spent: $1,050.00| Rating: 4

Pros:

CAMERA GREAT LENS SUCKS

Cons:

MY NIKON 5700 WILL SMOKE THE 18-55 LENS THIS CAME WITH. IT REALLY TICKED ME OFF TO SEE SUCH A DIFFERENCE AND NIKON DOESN'T CARE AT ALL JUDGING BY THE RESPONSE THEY GAVE ME

MY NIKON 5700 WILL SMOKE THE 18-55 LENS THAT COMES WITH THE D50. TOLD NIKON AND THEY DON'T CARE AT ALL. SO WILL HAVE TO PURCHASE A QUALITY LENS SO THE 5700 DOESN'T LOOK SO GOOD. AS FOR THE D50 IT IS GREAT, IT'S SO NICE TO BE BACK TO NO SHUTTER LAG AND INSTANT ON. AUTO FOCUS IS EXCELLENT. FOUND IT MUCH FASTER TO DOWNLOAD FROM CARD ONCE I CONVERTED TO USB2

Sumeet

Registered: November 2005Posts: 5

Nikon D50 review by Sumeet

Review Date: 11/22/2005

Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Total Spent: None indicated| Rating: 10

Pros:

EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT

Cons:

None that I miss on the images or the camera but a few, read below.

D50 is a great camera, bought this a few months back and have been hooked on to it.

I opted this against the larger and more featured D70s simply because when I checked it against the D70s the very slightly less featured D50 was lighter felt smaller but not too small and the missing features against d70s was not some thing I would really miss in D50. With the built quality - EXCELLENT.

The image quality is par excellence!! Exposure is bright images are clean and slightly soft, but I guess all DSLRs have slightly soft images. Apply a little unsharp mask in Photoshop and you have the best picture quality ever.

The 18-55 kit lens was disappointing to me. See my review on Nikkor 18-55, 18-70 and Sigma 18-200 on this site.

I sold the 18-55 for 18-70 which I use normally use now and the Sigma 18-200, though Sigma is a compromise to some extent, but works for me whilst traveling and packing very light. Also not changing lenses too often and missing the fun.

There are no features that I miss on the D50 as a normal user. The battery life is excellent never ran out till 500++ large-fine quality Jpeg shots and lots of reviewing on the LCD. The SD card is great too, light & small. I prefer it to compact flash.

Only wishes: there was a back-light on the LCD panel, a better SD card flip door which I often open accidentally while handling the D50, I wasn't forced to buy the D50 with the kit lens here in Australia and finally a better software than Picture project. Moreover picture project does not let you convert RAW to JPEG in large sizes only small size. Thats a laugh..OR, Nikon Capture supplied for free, which is very good but costs extra $$.